Sonipat: A massive fire broke out at a mattress-manufacturing factory in Barota village of Sonipat district in the early hours of Thursday, claiming the lives of two workers and leaving four others injured. Three of the injured workers are reported to be in critical condition. The incident triggered an extensive firefighting and rescue operation, with multiple fire tenders deployed at the site and a team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) called in amid fears that workers were trapped inside the factory.According to preliminary information, the fire broke out at around 4 am on Thursday. The Kundli fire brigade received information about the incident at 4.23 am, following which firefighting teams rushed to the spot. Given the intensity of the blaze, around eight fire tenders from Kundli, Sector 23, Education City and other fire stations were pressed into service. The presence of mattresses and foam inside the factory is believed to have contributed to the rapid spread of the flames. Firefighters battled the blaze for several hours before bringing it under control at around 10 am, according to Fire Officer Rameshwar. The fire caused extensive damage to the factory, with walls on three sides of the structure reportedly collapsing due to the intensity of the blaze.As the factory operated round-the-clock, there were concerns that workers might have been present inside the premises when the fire broke out. Following reports that some workers could be trapped, an NDRF team was called in to assist with the search and rescue operation. After several hours of searching the debris, the team recovered the skeletal remains of two workers.Police spokesperson ASI Ravinder Singh said the deceased had been identified as Kanhaiya Lal and his nephew, Sunil. Both were residents of Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri district. According to the police, no case has been registered so far. Singh said further action would be initiated if a formal complaint was received. The police are examining the circumstances surrounding the incident and investigating the case from all possible angles. The remains of the deceased have been sent for postmortem examination, police said. Four other workers sustained burn injuries in the incident. They were rushed to a private hospital in Sonipat for treatment, where three are said to be in critical condition. Their treatment is underway under medical supervision.Fire officer Rameshwar said a short circuit was being suspected as the possible cause of the fire based on preliminary information. However, the exact cause will be established only after a detailed investigation.
